Do I turn off my tubed components during burn-in?

One hour for warm-up is fine for the tubes themselves, but I've had some components that most certainly do sound better when left on all the time. The Pass Labs Aleph 5 amplifier I owned got better sounding after one or two days of warm-up, but I'm relying on my aural memory to make that judgement. Seems like the Class A stuff does better when it is left on longer, and I'm guessing it has more to do with the SS components, and the non-glass parts of tube gear. Someone tell me if I'm nuts here, or is there something to that. Yep those small signal tubes last about a year if left on all the time, but that will also depend on what pre-amp, which tubes, and how hard you drive your system when you do play it. My buddy tells me his Audible Illusions consumes 6922's pretty quick and the good ones are rather pricey, especially for a matched quad. Also, if you have a class A preamp with a larger transformer your electric bill will certainly reflect your decision to leave the pre on 24/7. I'm not familiar with the Dared. Definitely get rid of those Chinese tubes and get something better. Along with the list above, add to that GEC 12AT7's which are among the very finest out there but harder to find (this is definitely a shameless plug for the fact that I have a minty pair for sale right currently on A'gon). Seriously those are a great choice in that tube type as well. The others were also good reccomendations.

Marco

Ecclectique - thanks for the informative post. I learned a few things there and appreciate your effort. Alternatively if you want to burn in your amp and or preamp without wearing on the moving parts in your CD player just hook a tuner up to it and leave a good radio station on. If you want to stick with a CD there are actually discs with burn in tracks on them. I couldn't recall which ones, but I think "Barney's Greatist Hits" (you know, the big purple Dinosaur) might be a good choice. I found this little blurb on Amazon:

"There's no denying this record's exceptionally high burn factor where grownups are concerned, but those merciful enough to endure a rash of repeat listens may reap behavioral benefits. Songs such as "Please and Thank You," a reinforcement of the power of the magic words, and "The Friendship Song," a gently persuasive track preaching that kindness is king (especially among playmates)"

Sounds like it may be good for those of us lacking in manners too!

Marco